Improvement in cotton-harvesters



2 SheetsSheet 1. 'HOSFORD & AVERY.

. Cotton Harvester. No. 20,066; Patented April 27, 1858.

2 Sheets Sh eet 2.

HOSFORD & AVERY.

Cotton Harvester.

.Patented April .27, 1858.

UNITED STATES PATENT "OFFICE;

M. HOSFORD AND J. ojAv RY, .oaMAooN, MISSISSIPPI.

IMPROVEMENT"lN:.-COTTON -HARVESTER'S.

Specification forming part of LettersPatent No. 2 Q,066, .dated AprilQ7, 185

l'o all whom it mayicon'cem:

Be it known that we, MILES HOSFORD and J U. AVERY, 0t Maconfin thecounty of Noxubee and Stateof ll'lississippi, have invented a new andImprovedlllachine or-Implementfor H arvestingCotton-that is to say, forpicking or gathering it from the standing plantsin the field; and we dohereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings,making apart of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a view of ourimprovement ap plied to an operator. vertical section of the same, takenin the line a: .17., Fig. 3. Fig.3 is also a longitudinal section of thesame, taken in the line 3 y, the two planes of sections crossipg eachother at right angles. Fig. 4 is adetached view of a portion of theendless chain of pickers.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the severalfigures.

This invention consists in applying a system of gearing to an endlesschain of pickers, which is titted in a suitable frame or case, and soarranged that as the frame or dase is moved and the pickers therebyadjusted to the bolls the movement of said case will, through the mediumof the gearing aforesaid, wind up 3.

spring which serves as a reserve power to 0perate the endless chain ofpickers when the frame is stationary, and the pickers properly adjustedto the bolls, so that the cotton will he picked therefrom and depositedin a-proper receptacle or bag attached to the machine.

The object of the invention is to obtain a self-operating device, sothat two can be applied to each operator, who may operate one with eacharm and hand.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct ourinvention, we will proceed to describe it.

A represents a frame or case, which may be constructed of wood or sheetmetal, and B is an endless chain, which works over pulleys C DE, thepulleys C D being within the case and the pulley E attached to its outerend. The chain B is formed of a series of wire links, a, so-bentthateach link is provided with two pointed hooks, b b. which serve aspickers as well as a means of connection. (See more particularly Fig.4.) a

The pulley I) is the driving-pulley. This Fig.2 is a longitudinalpulleyis considerablylarger than the other two pulleys, U E, and it has spurs0 projectin g from its periphery. said spurs passing through the linksand preventing the slipping of the chain B. To each side of the pulley 0four radial arins,d, are attached. The pulley D is hollow, and it may beformed of an annular wooden rim, 6, having a metal disk, f, secured toeach side of it. The pulley Dis fitted loosely in its shaft E, and-acoil-spring,F-, is placed within the pulley, the outer end of the springbeing attached to the rim'e, as shown at g, the inner end of the springbeing attached to the periphery o't'a wheel, G, which is placed looselyon the shaft E of pulley D.

To each side of the wheel G a pawl, it, is at tached, and these pawlscatch into ratchets H I, one of which, H, is attached to the shaft E,and the other, I ,is attached .to ahollow arbor, i, which passes throughthe center of one of the sides f of the pulley D.

To the outer end of thearbori a pinion, j, is attached, and to the outerend of the shaft E, at the opposite side of the frame or case, a pinion,k", is'attached. The pinionj of arbor'igears into a pinion, k, the axisof which'passes through the side of the case A, and has a pin ion, k,on-its outer end.

The shaft J of the pulley Cl projects through the sides of the frame orcase A, and a frame. K, is fitted loosely thereon, said frame beingformed of two side bars, 1 l, connected at their upper ends, andterminating in a hook, m.

To the bars l l semicircular gears L L are attached, fone to each, thegear L working in the pinion k and the gear L working in the pinion k.

M is a bag, which is fitted to the back end of the case'A, the bottom ofthe back part of the case being open, as shown at n; and N is a strapwhich passes around the shoulder of the operator, said strap having aneye at its lower part, at-the armpit, the hook m of thet'rame fitting inthe eye,of strap N.

The operation is as follows: The frame A is attached to' the operator,as described, and shown in Fig. l, and as the outer end of the case A israised and lowered in order to move the outer end of the belt B fromboll to boll the wheel G and pulley D will be rotated in the directionof arrow 1, in consequence of the gears L L and pinions k k k 7' andratchets H I and pawls k 70, the gears L L rotating the wheel alternately n consequence of the intermediate-pinions, k k", the gear L rotatingthe wheel as the outer end of the case is raised and the gear L rotatingit as it descends, the

pulley rotating in the same direction at all times. By thus rotating thewheel G and,pul-

' ley D the spring F is wound up in consequence of the wheel G rotatingat first faster th an the pulley D, which, on account of its inertia, allows the springF to be wound up sufficiently before aneqilal speed iscommunicated to it, and; each time the outer end of the belt B ispresented to a boll the spring F will have sufficient power to operatethe belt, which moves in the direction of arrow 2, so that the belt willdetachthecotton from the boil and carry it around tothe back part ofthecase, where it is stripped from the belt by the arms d. the cottonfalling into the bag M. Thus it will be seen that the deviceisself-operating, the spring F being-the power which drives the belt andthe spring being wound up as fast or'rather faster than its power isexpended by the movement of device as it is adjusted from hell to boll;An operator therefore may have an implement attached to each arm, as noextra- -neonspower is required to operate them.

We would remark that the pulley E is attached to an arbor,'a", which maybe adjusted longitudinally in the end of the case and secured at anydesired point by a set-screw, b".

We are aware thatan endless belt of pickers for gathering or harvestingcotton has been previously used, and such device was patented byGeorge'A. Howe, the Letters Patent bearing date December, 4, 1855. i Inthe device of I Howes, however, the endless belt of pickers is operateddirectly by hand, and consequently only one can be used by eachoperator. We do not claim an endless belt of pickers placed within acase or frame and so arranged that it may detach the cotton from thebolls,;

for such device has been previously used but,

Having thus described ourinvention, what we claim as new, and desiretosecure by Letters MILES Hos'FoRD. J. o. AVERY.

Witnesses:

H. O. CARBART, E. Y. SMITH,

